BRADLEY WINS TITLE, RUDE, COURTNEY RUNNERS-UP TO LEAD ATHENS IN THIRD-PLACE FINISH AT BEDFORD TOURNAMENT

By: Tim Birney  /  January 29, 2022

BEDFORD, Pa. — Unbeaten senior Gavin Bradley bumped up a weight class this weekend, and still ran the table to win the 120-pound crown at the annual Thomas Chevrolet Tournament, while five of his teammates also placed to help the Wildcats to a third-place finish in the team standings.

Senior Karter Rude and junior Jake Courtney each brought home second-place medals, while senior Kaden Setzer placed third in his weight class, sophomore Josh Nittinger was sixth, and freshman Caleb Nason was seventh.

PIAA powerhouse ran away with the team title with 268 points, including five first-place finishes, while Burrell was second with 146 points, and Athens tallied 143.5 points. Beth-Center finished fourth with 138.5, and Northern Garrett was fifth with 118.5 points.

Bradley, the state’s top-ranked 113-pounder, won via default over Chestnut Ridge’s Ryan Dull in the 120-pound semifinals.

In the finals, Bradley, the second seed, squared off with top-seeded Cooper Hornack of Burrell, and forged a 9-1 major decision.

Bradley hit a five-point move with 29 seconds remaining in the fist period, and led 5-0 after the first two minutes.

Bradley sealed the 120-pound title with a pair of takedowns in the second period.

At 138 pounds, Courtney, the second seed, gave up a first-period takedown to third-seeded Chad Weist of Tussey Mountain, and trailed 2-0 at the end of the first two minutes.

Courtney started on the top in the second period, and rode Weist until turning him for a fall at 3:35.

In the finals, top-seeded Jacob Brenneman  of Northern Garrett used a big second period in a 7-1 decision over Courtney.

Brenneman recorded a takedown late in the first period and rode out the final 36 seconds to take a 2-0 lead into the second period, while he added an escape off the whistle, and two takedowns.

Brenneman rode out the final two minutes to preserve the win.

At 152 pounds, Rude, the third seed, upended second-seeded Jack Moyer of Chestnut Ridge in the semifinals.

Rude registered a pair of takedowns in the first period and led 4-1, but Moyer closed the gap to 4-2 with a quick takedown to start the second period.

Rude countered with an escape to start the third period, but Moyer closed the gap to 5-4 with a takedown with 24 seconds remaining.

After being cut loose, Rude scored a takedown with 13 seconds remaining to seal the 8-4 decision.

In the finals, top-seeded Tyler Berish of Beth-Center pulled out a hard-fought, 3-0, recision to win the 152-pound crown.

After a scoreless first period, Berish scored an escape just eight seconds into the second period, then added a takedown with 21 seconds left.

Bearish rode top for the entire third period to  preserve the win.

At 132 pounds, Setzer, the third seed, opened his day with a 5-3 overtime loss to second-seeded Kyle McCollum of Beth-Center.

After a scoreless first period, McCollum took a 1-0 lead with an escape midway through the second period. Setzer registered a takedown with 29 seconds remaining, but McCollum reversed him 10 seconds later to take a 3-2 lead into the third period.

Setzer tied it up midway through the third period, and the two grapplers spent the final 47 seconds on their feet.

McCollum’s sudden-victory takedown came with 1 seconds remaining in the extra session.

In the consolation semifinals, Setzer build an 8-2 lead before pinning Somerset’s Logan Baker in 2:50.

Setzer scored a takedown and led 2-1 after the first period, then hit a five-point move midway through the second period to take a 7-0 lead.

After a Baker escape, Setzer hit another big move, this time finishing off the fall with just 10 seconds remaining in the second period.

In the third-place match, Setzer fought off his back to pin fourth-seeded Jaxon Matthews of Central in 3:25.

After a scoreless first period, Matthews scored an escape with 1:33 remaining, then hit a five-point move, and had Setzer on his back at the buzzer.

Setzer took Matthews directly to his back, and finished off the fall just 25 seconds into the third period.

At 285 pounds, Nittinger, who was 3-1 Friday, scored a 4-1 decision over Milton’s Paul Rohland in the “blood round,” then lost via fall to sixth-seeded Cooper Lingenfelter in 3:42.

In the sixth-place match, NIttinger, the 13th seed, gave up a takedown with 12 seconds remaining in overtime in a 2-0 loss to fifth-seeded Karter Quick of Central Cambria.

At 215 pounds, Nason, the ninth seed, forged an 11-2 major decision over Chestnut Ridge’s Alex Crist in the “blood round,”  then lost via second-round fall to fifth-seeded Braxton Schwartz of Tri-Valley in the consolation quarterfinals.

In the seventh-place match, Nason fought off his back at the end of the second period, and scored a five-point move at the end of the third period for a 9-7 win over Southern Huntingdon’s Mitchell Hart.

At 189 pounds, senior Collin Rosh gave up a five-point move in the final nine seconds in an 8-5 setback against Chestnut Ridge’s Nick Presnell in the “blood round.”